Really Confused

[AerionIstari]

I'm trying hard to like this game but....

I've installed the Build 12 mod.

I'm getting creamed when I sail my ship and I can't even figure out what's going wrong. I've finally figured out (sort of) that the W and S keys seem to control the sails and D and A control direction... but...

There is a Big Map mode and a zoomed in mode. What's the difference?

I hit a storm and tried to sail through it but I sank. No idea what I did wrong.

My ship catches on fire but there doesn't seem to be a way to put it out.

Once I was attached and could not seem to return fire. No idea why I was even attacked to start with.

Once I made it to the island where Redmond is supposed to be but I could not figure out how to find and enter the Redmond harbor.

Once I sailed into a bay on the Redmond island while on the big map but when I switched to the little map, I could not get out of the harbor. When I attempted to sail out, I sunk for seemingly no reason.

Is there a player's guide out there somewhere with better detail than the manual?

 

[Pieter Boelen]

There is a ReadMe for the Build. Check the buildinfo subfolder in your PotC directory. I hope that helps.

About you ship catching on fire: Are you running Build 12, or also the Post Build 12 Mods? If you're running the Post Build 12 Mods, you can execute a firedrill to put out the fire by pressing "C".

To sail your ship:
W raises the sails
S lowers the sails
A turns the ship left
D turns the ship right

On the worldmap, you can sail between islands; in the 3D zoomed-in mode, you can sail around the islands and do battles with enemy ships. If you want to go to a harbour, press the ENTER button, then use the Sail-To functionality. That's quicker and easier the sailing around the entire island in search of the harbor. By pressing SPACE while the Anchor appears in the upper right corner of the screen, you can enter a harbour.
Pirates are always hostile to you (as are the French, most of the time). If pirates are near, they will attack you immediately. You must line up your ship with the enemy ship (the upper right corner map/compass will help, because it shows your ship's firing arcs), then press SPACE to fire your cannons at the enemy.

I hope this helps you for a bit. If you have more questions, feel free to ask. <img src="http://www.piratesahoy.com/forum/style_emoticons/<#EMO_DIR#>/doff.gif" style="vertical-align:middle" emoid="" border="0" alt="doff.gif" />
Hope you'll be having fun with the game. I assure you that once you figure out how everything works, it's a great game. <img src="http://www.piratesahoy.com/forum/style_emoticons/<#EMO_DIR#>/me.gif" style="vertical-align:middle" emoid="" border="0" alt="me.gif" />

 

[Mr. Cotton]

<!--QuoteBegin-Pieter Boelen+Aug 21 2005, 07:03 PM--><div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(Pieter Boelen @ Aug 21 2005, 07:03 PM)</div><div class='quotemain'><!--QuoteEBegin-->If you're running the Post Build 12 Mods, you can execute a firedrill to put out the fire by pressing "C".<!--QuoteEnd--></div><!--QuoteEEnd-->

But you need a special ability for it.

<!--QuoteBegin-Pieter Boelen+Aug 21 2005, 07:03 PM--><div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(Pieter Boelen @ Aug 21 2005, 07:03 PM)</div><div class='quotemain'><!--QuoteEBegin-->Pirates are always hostile to you<!--QuoteEnd--></div><!--QuoteEEnd-->

Not really. You can rise a pirateflag, then they be neutral.

 

[Pieter Boelen]

<!--QuoteBegin-Mr. Cotton+Aug 21 2005, 08:12 PM--><div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(Mr. Cotton @ Aug 21 2005, 08:12 PM)</div><div class='quotemain'><!--QuoteEBegin-->But you need a special ability for it.
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You're right. I forgot to mention that. Thanks for reminding me. You need the Basic Ship Defense special ability to execute a firedrill. You can assign skill points in the F2 --> Character screen.

<!--QuoteBegin-Mr. Cotton+Aug 21 2005, 08:12 PM--><div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(Mr. Cotton @ Aug 21 2005, 08:12 PM)</div><div class='quotemain'><!--QuoteEBegin-->Not really. You can rise a pirateflag, then they be neutral.
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Ah... Yes... Forgot about that one as well. <img src="http://www.piratesahoy.com/forum/style_emoticons/<#EMO_DIR#>/oops3.gif" style="vertical-align:middle" emoid="ops2" border="0" alt="oops3.gif" />
You can join the pirates. Then they will be friendly (sort of), but everybody else will be hostile instead. <img src="http://www.piratesahoy.com/forum/style_emoticons/<#EMO_DIR#>/yes.gif" style="vertical-align:middle" emoid="" border="0" alt="yes.gif" />

 

[Mr. Cotton]

<!--QuoteBegin-Pieter Boelen+Aug 21 2005, 07:24 PM--><div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(Pieter Boelen @ Aug 21 2005, 07:24 PM)</div><div class='quotemain'><!--QuoteEBegin-->Ah... Yes... Forgot about that one as well. <img src="http://www.piratesahoy.com/forum/style_emoticons/<#EMO_DIR#>/oops3.gif" style="vertical-align:middle" emoid="ops2" border="0" alt="oops3.gif" />
You can join the pirates. Then they will be friendly (sort of), but everybody else will be hostile instead. <img src="http://www.piratesahoy.com/forum/style_emoticons/<#EMO_DIR#>/yes.gif" style="vertical-align:middle" emoid="" border="0" alt="yes.gif" />
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I'm friendly to everyone. Except England. I hate these guys.

 

[CatalinaThePirate]

<img src="http://www.piratesahoy.com/forum/style_emoticons/<#EMO_DIR#>/hi.gif" style="vertical-align:middle" emoid=":gday" border="0" alt="hi.gif" /> AerionIstari, and welcome aboard! Have an ale! <img src="http://www.piratesahoy.com/forum/style_emoticons/<#EMO_DIR#>/beer2.gif" style="vertical-align:middle" emoid=":beer" border="0" alt="beer2.gif" />

For storms, if you get into one, just furl your sails and ride it out, you will get damaged, but if you do it with your sails up it is likely that you WILL sink!

If you have any ships following you, make sure you order them to "heave to and drift" - that will keep damage to a minimum.

Also, it is more likely you will sink if you get into a storm after you've had a battle, but before you get to a town to go to a shipwright for repairs. Hull damage, even if you DO furl your sails, will become much more of a problem during a storm. <img src="http://www.piratesahoy.com/forum/style_emoticons/<#EMO_DIR#>/urgh.gif" style="vertical-align:middle" emoid=":urgh" border="0" alt="urgh.gif" />

Hope this helps! <img src="http://www.piratesahoy.com/forum/style_emoticons/<#EMO_DIR#>/me.gif" style="vertical-align:middle" emoid="" border="0" alt="me.gif" />

 

[AerionIstari]

Thanks to all who replied. But I've decided against continuing to play POTC. I'm having far too many catastrophic things happen to me without any understanding or explaination what has happened or why and what I can do to fix or prevent it. Constantly reloading from last save is not my idea of a fun way to get through a game.

Props to those of you who have the patience or intuition to get through this game. I don't.

The final straw was when I finally succeeded in getting from Oxbay to Redmond and back with a load of leather only to be sank by cannon fire in the Oxbay bay. No idea what happened or why and at this point, I no longer care.

 

[Schwerpunkt]

<!--QuoteBegin-AerionIstari+Aug 23 2005, 07:22 PM--><div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(AerionIstari @ Aug 23 2005, 07:22 PM)</div><div class='quotemain'><!--QuoteEBegin-->The final straw was when I finally succeeded in getting from Oxbay to Redmond and back with a load of leather only to be sank by cannon fire in the Oxbay bay.  No idea what happened or why and at this point, I no longer care.
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This will be because of the main storyline. At the start of the game the English colony of Oxbay is seized by the French. If you sail in flying British colors they will open fire. If you choose neutral colors (F2 followed by Relations) you will be able to enter the port and moor safely.